• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Buying / Growing Food
  • Storing Food
  • Preparing & Cooking Food
  • Fun Food Stuff
  • Restaurants
  • More
    • Electronics & Gadgets
    • Health & Beauty
    • Hobbies & Crafts
    • Home & Garden
    • Jobs & Money
    • Outdoor Fun
    • Travel

Food and Cooking Guide

Real People. Real Experiences. Real Helpful.

a Fun Times Guide site

search

Home » Home & Garden » Buying / Growing Food » Urban Gardening: How To Grow Your Own Organic Fruits, Vegetables Or Herbs

Urban Gardening: How To Grow Your Own Organic Fruits, Vegetables Or Herbs

Pin
Share
Tweet

We write about products and services that we use. This page may contain affiliate links for which we receive a commission.


bowl-of-fresh-vegetables-by-John-Mason.jpg Have you started gardening for groceries yet?

A Bankrate article suggests that if you plant a garden, you will harvest savings. 

People used to go to places like Home Depot, Lowe’s, and garden centers asking for flowers, but these days people are asking for fruit and vegetable plants. 
Source: a TV news report

It sounds like an excellent idea and I am actually quite intrigued.  I am also very afraid.  I have never grown anything edible in my life. 

So what does an amateur who wants to harvest a few fruits and vegetables for the first time do? 

Actually, I did manage to harvest a few chives a couple of summers ago in a pot on the deck, but the output was quite pitiful.  Add to that the fact that I hate bugs, and worms, and dirt, and ants, and well, most outside things. 

If you can’t already tell, the idea of gardening for my own produce is quite scary.

I have been researching how you make a produce garden, and I’ve finally decided to give it a try. 

I am by no means planning to make a full garden this summer, but I am going to give tomatoes and strawberries a try. 

tomato-plant-suzanne100.jpg  wild-stawberries-by-juhabee.jpg

Due to the fact that I don’t want to go digging in the ground, I’m taking advice from this article on balcony gardening and I’ve ordered a container for growing upside down tomatoes. 

How To Start
To plant your own garden this summer (and save money on produce), check out these instructions on how to start a penny-pinching garden. Following the Penny-Pinching Grandma’s instructions, I have outlined my plan for this year. 

My goals:

Start small.  Considering the fact that I have no idea what I am doing, it makes no sense to do it on a grand scale.

Use containers if you have limited space. While I do have space, I do not want to use it for gardening.  I plant to garden instead from the safety of my deck utilizing the underside of the stairs to hang my upside-down tomato and strawberry plants. 

Get your soil PH correct.  I will purchase ready-mixed dirt for gardening. 

Fertilize your garden.  These items are also available at the local gardening center. 

Protect your plants.  We are well past the frost season, but I do worry about bugs.  I will keep a vigilant eye out for bugs.  I plan to use natural pesticides when needed.

Add water.  This is where I have gone wrong in the past many times with regular houseplants.  I fear this will be the hardest part of the job.

Share With A Neighbor
If you feel that gardening is not really your thing, then consider getting some of your produce from your next-door neighbor’s garden instead.  Some ideas:

    • Perhaps you have something else they would be willing to trade you produce for. 

    • You could also purchase meat wholesale (or buy a side of beef) and trade your neighbor meat for produce. 

    • Maybe you will have some items left over from warehouse shopping that you could trade for produce.

    • You could babysit your neighbor’s kids in exchange for a bushel of strawberries or fresh vegetables.

RELATED:

My Folia: A Garden Tracking Community

Urban Gardening Help

How To Grow Organic Vegetables For Frugal Sustainability

Urban Gardening: The Path To Freedom 

Grow Your Own Food

Community Gardening

Urban Garden Tips

How To Start A Community Garden On A Vacant Lot

Andrea
Andrea

I have been a certified tightwad since I became pregnant with my first child and decided to find a way to stay home with him. I enjoy sharing my experiences in my journey back to financial health and planning for a future — which will include sending 2 kids to college and early retirement.

Pin
Share
Tweet

Filed Under: Buying / Growing Food, Home & Garden Tagged With: food gardening, fruits, How-Tos, organic and natural, saving money, spices, strawberries, tomatoes, vegetables

Primary Sidebar

About Us

LynnetteI love my kitchen... and I like to cook. But my #1 requirement is that recipes have fewer than 7 ingredients (or arrive on my doorstep via a food delivery service). My absolute favorite thing about being in the kitchen is trying out new gadgets, cookware, and storage containers! I'm SUPER organized in the kitchen (and everywhere else) and I have every gadget I could possibly need neatly and compactly tucked away until I need it. I share only the simplest recipes (which is great for people who don't like to cook), along with time-saving food tips and cooking tricks (that will save you time and money). When I'm not cooking, cleaning, or organizing my kitchen... you can find me at the corner of Good News & Fun Times as publisher of The Fun Times Guide (32 fun & helpful websites).

Lynnette: View My Blog Posts

CurtisOne of my all-time favorite "hobbies" is cooking at home! I especially enjoy experimenting with new ingredients ...and different types of cookware. My specialties are foods that are diabetic-friendly, keto-friendly, and low-carb. I share my favorite recipes and cooking tips here at The Fun Times Guide to Food.

Curtis: View My Blog Posts

Top Searches

alcohol and liquor bananas beef beverages breads breakfast foods chicken cookware crockpots dieting eating out eggs food celebrities food gardening food humor food safety food storage free stuff freezing foods fruits grilling grocery shopping healthy foods hot peppers How-Tos kitchen gadgets leftovers microwave cooking tips onions organic and natural pantry party ideas pasta popcorn potatoes recipes to try reviews saving money snacks and desserts soups and stews strawberries tomatoes travel foods turkey vegetables

Footer

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Fun Times Guide logo
Shop Our Favorite Items

Copyright © 2004-2021 The Fun Times Guide | Privacy Policy | About | Contact | Sitemap